


Sunflowers

by Sephinova



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997)
Genre: F/M, Flashbacks, Flowers, Fluff, Not Beta Read, Reminiscing, may edit later
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:01:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,813
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26244595
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sephinova/pseuds/Sephinova
Summary: She was just like a sunflower, radiating in beauty and brimming with happiness.
Relationships: Lucrecia Crescent/Vincent Valentine
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Sunflowers

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ghost_of_a_meh_artist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ghost_of_a_meh_artist/gifts).



> This's a Birthday gift fanfiction to my best @miss_mhc on Twitter (aka ghost_of_a_meh_artist on Archive of Our Own). 
> 
> As much as I love writing about my rare-pair OTP of Sephiroth/Jenova I found it really refreshing to write about my other beloved FFVII ship of Vincent/Lucrecia despite being at a bit of a loss of ideas of what to write for my friend's birthday but for years I've liked the combination of Vincent/Lucrecia and sunflowers... so... ummmm... yeah... ^^' 
> 
> I may edit this a bit at a later date as I rushed to get this done on time.

Vincent squints his crimson eyes from the brightness of the midday summer sunshine as he strolls in the Nibelheim grasslands towards a long, tall line of gold in the distance, for him, it was like reliving a memory as if it had only happened yesterday. 

It is a memory he holds very dear, it is one of his last happy memories with _her_.

Just like that memory, the heat of the sun beats down on him without mercy, the distinct buzzing of cicadas ring in his ears, sweet floral scents of wildflowers fill his nostrils and if he imagines hard enough he can see _her_ running in the direction of that golden field wearing a floaty pale yellow summer dress and _her_ long chocolate brown ponytail swinging behind her. He smiles fondly.

-

_''Lucrecia! Please slow down! It's dangerous!'' Vincent calls out worriedly._

_Lucrecia giggles in response running away from her lover._

_''Nibel Wolves could be lurking around here!'' He warns her_

_''As long as you're with me I'll be fine!'' She reassures him._

_Vincent chases after Lucrecia loosening the tie around his neck and unbuttoning the top buttons of his shirt. He never would have thought that she would drop her picnic basket and make a spontaneous sprint to the sunflower field as she needed to head back to Shinra Mansion after another one of their sneaky picnic dates. But that was one of the many things Vincent loved about Lucrecia, her impulsive playfulness. Though occasionally, much like now, her playful ways held varying levels of risk that worried him sick and it isn't the fear of the higher-ups at Shinra headquarters having his head on a silver platter for failing at his job, it is the genuine fear of allowing his beloved Lucrecia to come to harm or worse._

_Lucrecia disappears into the sunflower field with Vincent finally arriving at the foot of the entrance seconds later._

_''Lucrecia! Please come out of there!'' Vincent pleads, panting heavily from the uncomfortable heat._

_''You'll just have to come get me!'' Lucrecia replies in a sing-song voice._

_With no other option, he enters the sea of sunflowers, please oh please let her games end without upset he hopes to himself._

_The large heads of the flowers were a head taller than him and their stalks so dense that it was more like a forest than a field. He wipes the beads of sweat off his brow with the sleeve of his shirt and his other hand is placed over his gun holster following and listening as best he can in the directions of the leafy rustlings of Lucrecia's movements._

_A couple of minutes pass and Vincent notices that the only movements that can be heard are his own as well as the relentless buzzing of cicadas. He stops, scanning the area for the slightest movement but all he can see is the flying of insects._

_His mind begins to race. Is Lucrecia hiding? Had she ventured further than he was able to see and hear? Or... could a Nibel Wolf have gotten to her!? But if it had he would have likely heard her screams and calls for help._

_''Lucrecia! Lucrecia! Where are you!?'' Vincent shouts, navigating deeper into the foliage. ''Lucrecia! Enough games! Please tell me you're alri-ah!''_

_Before he could react a quick flash of hands cover his vision._

_''Guess who?'' A goofy high-pitched voice asks._

_Vincent breathes a heavy sigh of relief knowing all too well who that exaggerated voice belongs to, she is surprisingly good at imitating the voices of old cartoon characters and decides to play along._

_''Are you... Prickles the Cactuar?''_

_''Noooo...''_

_''Bonterry the Tonberry?''_

_''Nope!''_

_''Mooglie-Googlie?''_

_''Not even close!''_

_''Could it be... you... Doctor Lucrecia Crescent?''_

_''Yes! I thought you'd never guess!''_

_Lucrecia removes her hands from Vincent's eyes and he turns around to meet her rosy grinning face, oh how his heart melts to see her so full of joy._

_''Let me know first before you decide to run out into the grasslands.'' Vincent tells her._

_''There's no fun in telling you my surprises!'' She answers back in her normal voice, throwing her arms around his neck._

_He wraps his arms around her waist. ''There will be no fun if something happens to you.''_

_''Learn to live a little, Mister Bodyguard! But you're not wrong... It was rather careless of me, I'm sorry.''_

_''It's alright, I'm just glad you're safe.''_

_Her gaze roams their surroundings. ''These sunflowers are so pretty, they've grown taller than the ones from two years ago.''_

_''What about last year's?''_

_''I didn't see them last year, at least not up close.''_

_''You could have asked the previous Turk that was assigned to protect you to escort you here at the time.''_

_Her smile vanishes. ''I was... too busy with my research...'' She murmurs, lowering her eyes._

_Vincent's heart sinks at the sudden change in Lucrecia's demeanour. Whenever the subject of the year before gets brought up a cloud of gloom always seems to overshadow her and he learned it is best not to inquire as to what had happened as she always replied with the same answer. Whatever had happened he suspects that it was a lot more than just preoccupation with work._

_If only he could ease her heavy heart..._

_His eyes wander and light up with an idea. He pulls away from her, takes out a pocketknife from his trouser pocket, unsheathes the silver blade and proceeds to cut into a sunflower stem._

_''Vincent, what are you...?''_

_Cut from its root, Vincent holds out the flower to Lucrecia. ''This's for you.''_

_Her face brightens with delight as she takes the gift from his hand. ''Thank you, Vincent. But... we're not allowed to pick these.''_

_''Why not?''_

_''They belong to Nibelheim's local farmers. They harvest their seeds and extract their oil and sell them to Cosmo Canyon and other neighbouring villages and of course, they sell these in town as well. They also use the flowers for the town's annual summer festivals.'' She explains, gently touching the flower's many petals._

_''Will we get into trouble?''_

_''When I first came here a couple of years ago I got caught picking a few by old farmer Frederick Strife.''_

_His eyes widen. ''The infamous hothead of Nibelhiem!?''_

_She giggles. ''That's right. He was ranting and raving saying how city folk do not appreciate the honest, hard work of country folk and that they take whatever they please from the fields when they come to Nibelheim.''_

_''I can understand where he was coming from but there was no need for him to yell at you.''_

_''Actually, it was rather humorous, he was so mad that his face turned into such a brilliant shade of red that you could practically see the steam coming out of his ears! It took all of my will power not to laugh!''_

_A smirk tugs at Vincent's lips. He remembers encountering Frederick Strife when Hojo dragged Vincent on an errand during market day a few weeks back. Hojo bumped into the old farmer's stall without looking where he was going knocking down the farmer's produce onto the ground. Oh, how satisfying it was to see that hothead blow up like a bomb in that irritating scientist's face. But to his dearest Lucrecia? Now that was unforgivable._

_''...I apologized to Mister Strife and told him that I didn't know that I wasn't allowed to pick them. He lightened up a bit after I offered to pay him double for what they're worth. When the sunflowers had withered I used their seeds to plant some of my own but they didn't grow anywhere near as healthily as these beauties. So, yes, we will get in trouble...''_

_Vincent gives Lucrecia a look of confusion as she passes back the flower to him and takes the pocketknife out of his hand._

_''...but only if we get caught.'' She says with a wink._

_''But you said-''_

_''Live a little, Vincent! Nibelheim won't crumble over a few missing sunflowers as there are hundreds here.''_

_''I just don't want you to get scolded again.''_

_''I'm a big girl, I can handle a scolding.''_

_''At least allow me to take the blame and compensate for them as I started it.''_

_''You didn't know.''_

_''But-''_

_''No more buts, Mister Bodyguard!'' She wags her finger at him like a mother giving a telling off to her child. ''We're in this together whether you like it or not! Now, how many shall we pick?''_

-

Vincent stops finally reaching his destination. He unwraps the blood-red bandana from his head, unclasps his tattered cloak and takes it off his shoulders the clothing now too unbearable to wear in the steadily rising heat. His gaze ascends to the sunflowers, they are just as tall as he remembers them. He extends his hand up stroking the sunny petals. They are warm and silky-soft to his fingertips exactly how he recalls _her_ skin felt many years ago. _She_ was just like a sunflower, radiating in beauty and brimming with happiness. What Vincent wouldn't give to relive those joyful days with _her_ again...

...and the chance to right his sins.

He mentally shakes off his feelings of regret and puts his focus back onto the yellow flowers.

''I wonder if _she_ will like these as a gift...'' Vincent thinks aloud.

After a moment of pondering, he makes his decision and takes hold of a green stalk.

-

With sunflowers cradled in his arms, Vincent now stands before a heavenly-looking woman in the deep darkness of a damp cave. She is just like him frozen in time her appearance had long since ceased to age. Her body is encased in a large glowing Mako crystal surrounded by water, her seemingly sleeping face is tranquil yet an aura of sadness emanates from her, she wears an elegant long white dress that exposes her arms and midriff and her hands are held together below her chest almost as if she's in silent prayer. 

She is his beloved angel.

''Hello, Lucrecia... I'm here again.'' Vincent greets, his voice echoing gently. ''Do you remember the sunflower field in Nibelheim? I went there today. The weather is hot as ever at this time of year and the sunflowers have grown beautifully as they did all those years ago.'' 

Lucrecia remains still and silent.

''I remembered that it's your birthday today, 22nd July and I thought that you may like these sunflowers.''

Effortlessly, Vincent leaps over the shallow pool of water to Lucrecia's crystal.

''And if you're wondering, I _lived a little_ picking these and I didn't get caught, unlike that time when we did.'' He confesses with a quiet chuckle.

He kneels down laying the sunflowers at the foot of the crystal submerging the stalks in the water.

_''Thank you... Vincent.''_

Vincent looks back up at Lucrecia and sees a small smile gracing her lips.

**Author's Note:**

> I headcanon that at happier times in Lucrecia's life she had a playful streak and could be rather daring.
> 
> Thank you for reading! :D


End file.
